Little things can make all the difference when it comes to getting the best sound from a guitar. I’ve mentioned a few of these tips in previous entries but they bear repeating as I see many students who need to correct small but crucial technique elements in their playing. First and foremost is posture. Most of us routinely sit down when we play and where we sit can make all the difference. It’s obvious to most players that sitting in a chair with arms makes playing all but impossible unless you sit on the very edge of the chair so the arms do not make contact with the back of the guitar. The opposite mistake is sitting on a soft, comfortable sofa – this encourages holding the guitar with the body at something approaching a 45-degree angle to your body. This in turn forces the player to reach farther around the neck, which limits hand movement and makes arching of the fingers almost impossible. The late, great bluesman T-Bone Walker played his guitar (while standing) with the instrument almost flat in front of him. This always amazed guitarists but as very few of us have T-Bone’s chops, I would avoid this! A chair with a straight back and no arms is best. And just like your mother always reminded you – sit up straight! That way the body of the guitar can be held flat against your body and this in turn makes reaching around the neck mush easier. The problem with this of course is that it makes seeing the fretboard more of a challenge but resist the temptation to tilt the guitar slightly to see the neck more easily. The more you tilt the guitar, the farther around the neck you must reach. And the farther you reach, the more difficult it is to correctly arch your fingers, which is essential for accurate placement and clear, clean tone. One of the most common technique boo-boos I see (guys seem to be more guilty of this for some reason) is resting the elbow and forearm on the thigh while negotiating the neck. This is a subconscious reaction to the weight of the neck. Problem is, this totally restricts flexibility in the wrist, something that must be present to arch those fingers but even more importantly, to be able to drop the wrist to play barre chords. Hold that neck up – I have seen this little adjustment help students who have struggled with hand movement and barre chords almost instantly solve the problem. The best way I know to counter the weight of the neck is to play with a strap on the guitar, even when sitting down. One proviso here however – I’m talking about guitars that have a strap button installed on the heel of the guitar. Straps that are tied to the head of the guitar tend to get in the way, especially when sitting and playing. Straps used while a player is sitting must be adjusted (shortened) compared to when used while standing. Try using a strap if you just can’t break the habit of resting your arm on your thigh when you play. You will be amazed at the difference in your fretting hand technique. Playing while standing is often awkward and a real challenge for anyone who’s always played while sitting but it is certainly worth doing because the aforementioned fretting hand/arm issues are eliminated. Also, if you sing and play (and you should!), standing allows deeper breathing and this makes for better singing. Voice teachers ALWAYS require students to stand when they sing, for good reason. Just remember – no matter how much you practice, incorrect physical technique can defeat all your attempts at advancement. Peace & good music, Gene

When I was young and had progressed beyond the raw beginner stage of guitar playing I went into a phase that most young players reach at some point: I wanted to be the fastest, flashiest player around. After some (misplaced) effort, I got to being fairly fast on a few tunes. But the bitter reality I soon learned was that, 1.) I was never going to be the fastest player on the planet, and 2.) who cares, anyway?! The audience was way more interested in something else entirely – the vocals. Over the many years I’ve taught, the overwhelming majority of guitar students approach the guitar with a fairly simple goal. They want to strum or finger-pick songs to accompany their own singing or the singing of others. That’s not to say the level of their playing doesn’t need to stand on its own; there are hundreds of what are essentially back-up guitar parts that are enjoyable on their own. A song like the Beatles “Blackbird” is a good example. And in the end (oops, an inadvertent Beatles lyric quote!)… It still comes back to the vocals. For most people anyway. If you have any doubt, listen to this. See what I mean? Is there any doubt about what is the most important part of the mix? So how should a guitarist deal with this reality? Assuming a player has conquered the basics of keeping a steady beat and chord changes without hesitation, other, more subtle elements should enter the equation. First and foremost is something I discussed recently in this space: dynamics. Any backing instrument, whether it be guitar, keyboard or even single pitch instruments should never compete with the vocals. I’ve seen plenty of semi-pro players who just don’t get this. It seems that they are in some kind of competition with the singer, trying to draw the attention of listeners away from the vocals to their awesome guitar playing. What they don’t realize is just how annoying this is for the average listener. When it comes time for an instrumental solo, that is the time to crank it up – but just a bit, and lay back when the vocals resume. A good sound person really helps with this. If an instrument is only mic’ed, knowing how to approach and pull away at the right times is essential. Even if you have no intentions of ever playing in public, melding an unobtrusive but solid guitar part with vocals is gratifying. The best part may be that it doesn’t have to be fancy guitar licks or complex changes. Listen to what songwriters like John Prine or even Jimmy Buffett do with only three or four chords, sincere and committed (if not necessarily opera quality) vocals and catchy lyrics. You may not consider yourself a singer. That’s just fine. Close the bedroom door and sing away anyway. This forces you to depend on your guitar playing in ways that really matter. Have fun and don’t be too rough on yourself. That’s the difference between just playing and making music. Peace & good music, Gene

Friday the 13th. Hopefully this traditionally bad-luck day doesn’t result in broken strings, dead battery in your digital tuner, misplacing your capo, non-functional (for no apparent reason) connecting cords to your amp or PA system, someone else showing up for your scheduled gig, spilling coffee on your guitar or too many requests for songs you don’t know how to play. I speak from experience. And none of these recent things happened on a Friday the 13th by the way! I haven’t been buying too many higher end guitars lately for students or for resale. This is because for some reason the prices on the used guitar market seems to be at an all-time high. I don’t really have any idea why this is. I’ve written about the volatility of the used guitar market in the past and have no reason to change much of what I said. In many cases people have unreasonable expectations of what their used guitar is worth. Even when offering a nice instrument from one of the premium, large output builders such as Martin, Taylor, Gibson, Guild or Larrivee it is not reasonable to expect a 90% return on what a person paid for that guitar if the model is one that’s common and readily available. There are dozens of retailers who offer brand new guitars by those makers at 40% off list price, although they often can’t advertise at those prices. The retailers must adhere to MAP rules (minimum advertised price) but a quick phone call or email will result in finding out the real price. The advantages of buying from a legitimate, authorized dealer are many, beginning with the warranty. Let’s say a certain Martin has a list price of $2000. At 40% off, you pay $1200. At that price, this most likely is one of the common but quite fine, run-of-the-mill Martin models (if there is such a thing – you can be pretty certain it will be a great guitar). On the used guitar market that guitar should sell for about $800, give or take. But I often see people trying to sell such a guitar for $1000 – or more. This just doesn’t make sense. For only a few dollars more the buyer could get a new instrument, with Martin’s famous Limited Lifetime Warranty (to the original owner only). Plus, buying that new guitar from a reputable dealer means the buyer has the certainty that the dealer will stand behind their sale. Wait a minute, Gene. Are you saying I should buy a premium guitar without playing it first?! Well, the short answer is – yes. These days the major manufacturers are remarkably consistent in the quality of their builds. A Martin D-15 or a Taylor 314 is going to sound and play great, especially if purchased from a dealer like Maury’s Music, My Favorite Guitars, Elderly Instruments or Gruhn where all guitars are “set up” to ensure the little things like tweaking the action and a visual inspection are done before the sale. Yes, you are taking a bit of a chance, especially if you have no experience with a particular model. But if for any reason you don’t like your new guitar, all the above mentioned dealers offer a short period of time (days or perhaps a week) when you can return that guitar for another or even a refund. You will have to pay the return shipping but in my opinion that is a risk worth taking. With imported guitars the return on investment is less. You would be fortunate to get 50% of what you paid for just about any Ibanez, Alvarez, Yamaha, Recording King or many other of the good quality imports. Even if that guitar is in perfect condition, the fact is there are tens of thousands of those guitars on the used market at any time. Also, the things that may go wrong with even higher quality imports are many compared to American and Canadian made guitars. A buyer who has, say, $300 to spend on a used import most likely does not have the knowledge to recognize things like a guitar in need of a neck re-set, sloppy tuning machines or poor sounding electronics. You usually don’t find new imports at 40% off list but the big mega retailers usually offer free shipping, which can save you quite a bit. Also, the “big two” (Guitar Center and Musician’s Friend – actually the same company) offer a 30-day, no questions asked return policy, assuming the guitar is returned in the condition it was when purchased. I have taken advantage of this with things like amps and I think it outweighs the slightly higher prices they charge for most of their offerings. So why are guitar prices so high right now? The allegedly improved economy? The ever-increasing popularity of the guitar, which I believe has a lot to do with the acoustic guitar being so prevalent in today’s music? Older Baby Boomers who have decided to take up the guitar after having dabbled in playing in their younger days? Probably those things and others. As with most consumer items in this country, where you live does have an effect on guitar prices – higher in urban areas, less in rural areas. Just be aware that there is no justification or reason to pay close to retail price for most used guitars. Peace & good music, Gene

A new student started lessons last night, a young guy of junior high age who was typical of kids his age: shy but enthusiastic, with parents who obviously want him to succeed and be excited about playing the guitar. Being a parent I well remember how awkward kids can be at that age and I did my absolute best to make him feel comfortable but I know it will be a couple more lessons before he can relax to the point that he’ll be able to ask questions about things he may not understand. That’s OK. It’s early but I think he’ll do fine. After he left I was reflecting on guitar teachers I had early on and it came to me yet again how they shaped my teaching style. We’ve all had good and bad teachers, not only in music but also in school. What makes a good teacher? I am also fortunate to be married to a wonderful lady who spent 35 years teaching in the public schools on the elementary level. I learned a lot from her too (I hope!) in terms of commitment, teaching style, and yes, sacrifice for your students. Although I studied music education in college as a music major I seriously doubt I could have held out for 35 years in a classroom environment. At least I have the advantage of teaching people who WANT to be here, rather than those who HAVE to be here! Anyway, here’s a rundown of guitar teachers I had early on and at least some of what I learned from them. My first teacher was a very stern lady of German descent named Mrs. Bucholz. She taught out of her house not far from where I grew up in Mystic, Connecticut. My parents decided that I was serious enough to warrant their investment in lessons. Problem was, Mrs. Bucholz was a rigid classical style teacher and player and my interests at age 12 ran to folk music, especially the music of Peter, Paul & Mary. In her view this was a total waste of time and effort. In fact, when I would begin to play the first few measures of “Freight Train” she would brusquely tell me to stop and get back to slogging through some Carulli etude in Alfred’s Guitar Method, Book 1. Ugh. I hated it. The positive take-away here was that I did learn to read guitar music. And I stuck it out for longer than I might have, possibly because she had a very cute teenage daughter who would be around from time to time! A couple years later, after attending a couple Newport Folk Festivals and sitting almost at the feet of the likes of Mississippi John Hurt, Reverend Gary Davis, Bukka White and Dave Van Ronk I got into acoustic blues. Upon hearing my sorry attempts at that style, my dad thought it would be a good idea if I took some jazz guitar lessons. Now, to my immature mind, jazz had nothing whatsoever to do with acoustic blues (yeah, right…) but I agreed. I began lessons at the venerable Harry’s Music in New London with a young man who was attending the local Coast Guard Academy, most likely the jazz guitarist with their famous band. He immediately tried to impress on me the importance of barre chords – yikes! – and fancy inversions. I bailed after a few lessons. My bad. I still regret that to this day. But I did learn how to play a full barre F Major. He was a nice enough guy though and it made me realize that you didn’t need to be a hard ass to be a good music teacher. Many years passed when I played in many groups and mostly learned stuff on my own and from other players. Then about 20 years ago I decided I really needed to learn to be a better jazz guitarist and began lessons with a great player in Boston, whose name escapes me now but along with many years of professional experience playing jazz he had toured extensively with Bo Diddley (which he kind of poo-poo’ed). Anyway, as good a player as he was, his communication skills and enthusiasm were definitely lacking. I would stop him while he played and say, hey, how did you do that? And he was either unable or unwilling to explain and demonstrate at a speed I could comprehend. When I asked him about constructing a solo he would say – just play what you hear! Problem was, I didn’t hear anything…. Lesson learned, as it related to my own teaching. Communication is essential to the learning experience. My most recent teacher was the very best. He is a fantastic jazz guitarist named Jim Robitaille. He lives in New Bedford and plays frequently in the area in groups, duos and as a single. Jim understands that everyone learns at different speeds and most importantly he listens not only to the student’s playing but also their questions, concerns and frustrations. In fact, I’m overdue for a “check-up” with Jim! I guess what I’m getting to here is the importance of not hanging on with a teacher with whom you don’t connect but have faith in one with whom you do. But also be open minded enough to know where the issues lie – with the teacher or your own expectations. Peace & good music, Gene

My buddy from Australia, Tony Obermeit offered a great idea for a post: Things we’ve done wrong with our playing that we wish we could change but haven’t. Oh man, I’m afraid my list will be way too long and in the spirit of “do what I say, not what I do!” here goes: Looking at the big picture for the moment (will get to specifics shortly) I am convinced that the single biggest mistake we ALL make is focusing totally on one style or type of guitar playing to the exclusion of others. I’m often asked by my students and others – how long have you been playing? Well, the answer is often “longer than you’ve been on this planet!” but I quickly add that this doesn’t really mean a damn thing. This is because many of those years, and maybe decades, were lost time. For one reason or another I rejected lots of types of music, styles and players because I didn’t consider what they were doing “good” music. I’ve written about that in this space before but it bears repeating. You can learn something from just about any type of music, things that will surely make your playing better. Now understand – I’m not saying you have to LIKE all kinds of music. Lord knows, I’d rather have a root canal procedure than listen to hip-hop but it reminds me of the importance of rhythm. Discounting for a moment the often inane, sing-song, occasionally misogynist and violent lyrics, I’m reminded that when you come right down to it, the average listener finds an incessant, steady beat just about irresistible. Put another way, as I often tell my students who are struggling with particular chords, play right through them. They will get better with practice. Your average listener has no idea what full barre F-Major is supposed to sound like but almost everyone can tap their foot! Don’t draw attention to your mistakes by breaking the beat. Specifically, here are a few things about my playing that I wish I had changed long ago: Focusing on melody while improvising. When I began learning to improvise the idea was to be immediately creative and come up with things that had nothing to do with the melody. In my defense, I began with blues and scale-wise improvising and melodies are often not very strong in blues. But that’s really no excuse. Jazz guys know this. In traditional jazz, soloists usually begin and end a solo with the “head,” which is the melody of a tune, in whole or in part. The great ones go off on amazing tangents but you never really forget the melody. If I had understood this thirty years ago I would be ten times the player I am today. No kidding. But I am trying to make up for lost time these days and learn melodies before I move on to more complex improvising in a given tune. Keeping a steady beat. I think I’m pretty solid in this department now but there is always room for improvement. Tony mentioned using a metronome when practicing. Annoying and downright frustrating at times, yes, but I don’t know a better way for a single player to become rock-solid in this essential skill. Wish I used one years ago. I do now but still not as often as I should. Controlling dynamics, especially when playing with others. This is a huge subject. Making my playing respond to what others are doing without overwhelming them is always a challenge and in spite of my best efforts I still play too loudly at times. We all get wrapped up in the moment when we play, and we should because it feels so good! The trick is channeling that energy and still being spontaneous. The worst and most amateurish abuse of dynamics is to play loudly to get the attention of an audience. I don’t think I ever did that but maybe I’m just ignoring that memory! In any case, understanding the importance of dynamics is something I should have thought about a long time ago. And lastly, patience. Patience with players who were perhaps not quite as advanced as I was. I think at some point all players are guilty of this. I’m still working on this but I’d like to think I’ve mellowed out quite a bit in my advancing years. There was a time when I had no interest in playing with anyone who wasn’t at least on my level and without a doubt, I missed some great musical opportunities along the way. What turned me around on this was finding myself in situations where it became obvious that my own playing was dragging another player down and how bad it made me feel when I felt their disdain. This was a harsh lesson and in a few cases the sting is still fresh, even after many years. I guess the point to all this is that as long as we all recognize and accept our musical shortcomings there is hope. Acceptance doesn’t mean we can’t change them, however! Peace & good music, Gene

With the “official” end of summer weekend upon us here on Cape Cod, town is jammed with tourists looking for one more weekend of fun on the Cape. I generally try to avoid going in to town this weekend but some friends invited us to join them last night at a popular Irish bar right down on Main Street. I knew it would be crowded (it was) and food is mediocre (it was) but hey, the beer is cold and I really like our friends so off we went. There was a guy playing who’s there quite often and even though I’m not a huge fan of guys belting out Irish tunes while they whale away on a guitar, there is no questions he was very, very good at his job and the packed house loved him. He has a very good voice too, but beyond that and his command of that style of guitar playing I couldn’t help but admire his act. For a performer just starting out and trying to break into the fairly lucrative world of doing a single in resort communities, or anywhere really, checking this guy out could be very educational indeed. He didn’t do just Irish tunes, although there were plenty of those (“Wild Rover” “Whiskey in the Jar” and of course “Danny Boy”) – he also did many of the tunes that, at least around here, have stood the test of time on the singles circuit, stuff like “Amie,” “I Saw Her Standing There,” “Sweet Caroline” (how could he NOT play that one in Red Sox Land??!) but also dug even deeper into John Denver songs and the like, tunes that I thought had faded away long ago. Apparently not. And the crowd sung along with virtually every tune, with great gusto if not perfect pitch – ha! My wife commented afterwards that it wasn’t just we oldsters singing along. Even the 20-somethings sang the John Denver tunes. This was curious – we concluded that perhaps their parents (or grandparents!) played recordings of Denver for them? Now here’s the take-away for anyone hoping to work into doing a single in bars, Irish or otherwise. This guy was an absolute bundle of energy and in his hour-plus sets there was absolutely NO down-time. The instant he stopped playing and even before the clapping stopped he was already enthusiastically and loudly talking to the audience and I doubt more than 30 seconds elapsed between tunes, all of which were up-tempo. His pacing was excellent, he showed tons of energy and clearly loved what he was doing. This was infectious and the audience was his from moment one. The only downside has more to do with me than him. It was LOUD in there. I mean, scream into the ear of the person sitting next to you, loud. If it had not been that loud would he have had the reaction and attention of the audience? Unlikely at best. So I get it, I understand why it needs to be that way. God bless him and I’m sure he’ll continue to be popular and work as much as he wants to. That’s what being a work-a-day musician strives for. But oh man, I think my ears are still ringing. It will take me some time to build up the fortitude to return to that bar! Could be worse, one of my friends said. At least people can’t smoke in bars anymore! Peace & good (quieter?) music, Gene